


An End and A Beginning

by hallowed-vessels (hasbeenhotel)



Category: Subnautica (Video Game)
Genre: Gen, kind of a reincarnation au?, ryley’s only here for a little bit tho
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-08
Updated: 2020-09-08
Packaged: 2021-03-07 07:40:51
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26349508
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hasbeenhotel/pseuds/hallowed-vessels
Summary: Bart spends his final moments making a new friend.
Relationships: Sea Emperor Leviathan & Bart Torgal
Comments: 4
Kudos: 63





	An End and A Beginning

“ _Don’t... go. It is... lonely... here._ ”

Bart looked around, uncertain of where he was. Some sort of enclosure? Like an aquarium, but it lacked glass walls and curious eyes looking in.

It made him feel so small. Turning around to find himself face to face with a brown snout twenty times his size made him feel even smaller.

He gazed at the magnificent creature in front of him with awe and wonder. The leviathan was the most incredible thing he’d ever seen.

“Did you bring me here?” He asked breathlessly.

“ _I brought you here... to play._ ” The edges of his vision swirled as the leviathan’s voice echoed in his head. “ _You were going... to leave. It is... lonely here... Others came... before you. You can hear me... They could not._ ” The words were slow, deliberate and thoughtful. Each one was carefully chosen, spoken with impossible heaviness.

What was the polite way to converse with this creature? An introduction couldn’t hurt. “I’m Bart. Bart Torgal. It’s nice to meet you. Do I know you?”

“ _I have tried to reach you. You... struggled to hear. But now, now you hear me... as you cling to this world._ ” The leviathan seemed to be able to sense the panic building inside him, and responded before he could ask. “ _You still... have time. Come, swim with me._ ” She left her throne, and began to swim in leisurely circles around the aquarium.

He had a lot to say, but the thoughts jumbled together and became impossible to work out. He settled for, “I’m sorry that I couldn’t hear you.”

“ _It is alright. You... are here, now. I thank you for your company. It is... less lonely here, with you._ ”

He swam after her, and struggled to keep up, even with her slow pace. “You’re trapped here, aren’t you?” He guessed. “How do I help you?”

They swam in silence for a while while the leviathan pondered his words. “ _Your heart is good. But, you cannot help me. Not here, not now._ ”

Once again, Bart isn’t sure how to respond. So he swims with his new friend, relieved that he doesn’t seem to need oxygen or rest here. If he could do nothing else, he could at least keep her company.

The leviathan eventually settled back down on her throne, watching over the eggs in front of her. How had he not noticed those earlier?

He followed her and swam to the eggs, looking to her for permission before placing his hand on one. It’s warm, he can tell that the shells are thin. They have been, for a long time. “Why don’t they hatch?”

There’s a long rumble. A sigh, perhaps? “ _The time is not right. Until the time is right... I will watch over them._ ”

“And after?”

“ _My children’s first breaths will be my last._ ”

Bart averted his eyes. He shouldn’t have asked.

“ _Do not mourn me before I pass._ ” Her voice turned wistful. “ _I wonder... what it will feel like, to be reborn as something new? To see the world, with fresh eyes? What will you become, I wonder?_ ”

He thought about it. Seeing this world for the first time again, wouldn’t that be a novel experience? Maybe he’d like to be a crabsnake. And yet, the idea of living in a cave his whole life, hurting others to live, did not appeal to him. “I think,” He chose his words carefully. “I would like to be something small enough to see into every little space of this planet. I’d like to be a friend, to every creature who needs it.”

The leviathan raised her head and lowered it again. Was it a nod, or just a coincidentally similar action? “ _Our time together... Runs short. I shall try to guide you to that path._ ”

The world started to go fuzzy. Black crept into the corners of his vision. “I don’t want to go!” Bart cried out. He wrapped his arms around the egg and held on like it was a lifeline. “Can’t you help me? I want to help you!”

The leviathan leaned down, and he could see his whole body reflected in one glowing eye. “ _You cannot help me here... But you can guide others. May the currents... Bring you back, to me._ ”

He felt like he was being distorted, crushed down and compacted into something smaller. His vision was fading far too fast. He should have panicked, but he just felt calm.

His own words echoed in his mind.

_**Marguerit and Father are now part of the ecosystem of this incredible planet. It’s reassuring to know that when I go, I’ll join them.** _

* * *

It was a long time before Bart woke up again. His new form was strange, somewhat resemblant of an octopus, but more pudgy and round.

He saw a face, a new and unfamiliar one, with a blue streak in his hair. Bart was taken out of the alien containment and led outside.

As soon as he could, he wrapped a limb around the man’s hand and pulled him along, down towards the Deep Grand Reef, down towards the Lost River.

_Come with me,_ he tried to say. _I know someone who needs your help._

**Author's Note:**

> Yeah I don’t know what possessed me to make this. I guess I just wanted ocean mom and plant son to interact.


End file.
